From The Depths: Benz Hauled from Bay Bottom in Brick

Even one of Germany's finest automobiles was no match for Superstorm Sandy.

It's tough to tell the exact model this car was, but the body style and taillights indicate it's a midsize Mercedes-Benz, probably from the 1990s.

Crews found it in Barnegat Bay in Ocean County Monday afternoon and towed it to the boat ramp at Traders Cove Marina off Mantoloking Road in Brick, where it was hauled out from the murky depths.

The muddied car is suspected to have gotten washed into the waterway during Sandy.

A contract was awarded by the state last month to Crowder Gulf, a Theodore, Ala.-based company, to remove debris from the northern and central portions of Barnegat Bay, hopefully in time for the summer boating season.

Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Larry Hajna said debris is being detected through the use of remote-sensing sonar, and identified by visual observation and previous data gathered by local municipalities.

There is no official estimate on how many cars remain at the bottom of the bay, though the DEP has said eight cars washed into the waterway near Mantoloking.